Overview
- An interim National Park Service report this week found lead, chromium and other metals in soil from more than 2,000 truckloads of East Wing debris dumped at the public East Potomac Golf Links, and the Interior Department said the testing met legal standards.
- Senate Republicans inserted $1 billion for Secret Service work tied to the East Wing Modernization Project into a broader immigration enforcement bill this week, with the text allowing only security upgrades above and below ground.
- Democrats and several Republicans warned the funding is a political liability during a cost‑of‑living squeeze, as Sen. Thom Tillis pressed for full costs and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker urged redirecting the money to tariff relief.
- Courts have narrowed what the project can do for now, with a federal judge pausing above‑ground construction without congressional approval and U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes on Monday limiting tree cutting at the golf course.
- The White House casts the ballroom as a security need after the April 25 Correspondents’ Dinner shooting, yet a Washington Post‑ABC News‑Ipsos poll last week showed 56% oppose the project as lawsuits and funding fights continue.